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June 2020 Edition Fraternal Order of Police Wellness Services www fop net 2019 National Fraternal Order of Police
June 2020 Edition 701 Marriott Dr Nashville TN 37214 615 399 0900 or 800 451 2711 Fax 615 399 0400 Sherri Martin Director of Wellness Services SherriRowan hotmail com National Executive Board Patrick Yoes President Joe Gamaldi Vice President Jimmy Holderfield Secretary Tom Penoza Treasurer Les Neri 2nd Vice President Keith Turney Sgt at Arms Rob Pride Chairman of Trustees 701 Marriott Dr Wellness Committee Nashville TN Sherri37214 Martin Chair Bourret 615 Darrin 399 0900 or Michael Haley 800 451 2711 Sean Harper Fax 615 399 0400 Brian Nanavaty Corey Nooner Mike Violette A healthy body contributes to a healthy mind Get up get your heart pumping and your blood flowing Increased blood flow and oxygen to your brain often clarifies thinking Physical activity wards off depression Achievements even small ones increase wellbeing www fop net
June 2020 Edition Mind Body Partnership You wake up for your midnight shift after only five hours of sleep and just can t recall what your spouse said this morning about an important event you need to attend next week Not only can you not remember when the event is but you can t even remember what the event is Fast forward four hours later on shift and you hear a coworker calling for assistance over the radio Your heart pounds These two episodes both illustrate the very important relationship between our minds and our bodies The mind and body are often thought of as two separate entities that function independently However they are partners and they communicate with each other constantly More than likely if one isn t well the other isn t either How you feel can affect your thinking just as how you think can affect how you feel For example worry and stress over finances and other problems can lead to muscle tension headaches or more serious problems like high blood pressure Likewise an illness or nagging physical pain can affect your thoughts and emotions causing sadness irritability or even depression We know this from observations of our own experiences but science also backs it up In one study researchers found that stress diminishes white blood cell response to infected cells and cancer cells In addition when individuals are stressed they heal more slowly and vaccinations are less effective This is especially applicable information during this time of COVID 19 Continued www fop net
June 2020 Edition Partnership Continued However we have within us the power to manipulate this partnership in positive ways too Your brain produces endorphins which are natural painkillers and gamma globulin which strengthens your immune system and science shows that what your brain produces is partially driven by your thoughts and emotions If you re not well but you have hope and a positive attitude and you believe that you ll get better your brain is likely to produce chemicals that will boost your body s healing power Similarly positive thinking may help you better handle stress in the day to day of your law enforcement duties But it takes more than just positive thinking As police officers we are pushed to maintain levels of physical fitness We pay attention to our diets try to eat right and many of us are committed to a regular physical fitness routine However how many of us have a schedule and a regimen for regularly exercising our minds Mind body medicine is an emerging approach to increasing wellness which is patient centered healing oriented and involves a shift from focusing on only physical illness to focusing on the physical health and mental health Mind body medicine includes intervention strategies and therapeutic approaches that promote health including but not limited to yoga meditation Pilates tai chi relaxation therapy clinical and applied hypnosis guided and visual imagery biofeedback prayer qi gong metaphysical healing metaphysical counseling cognitive behavioral therapy spirituality spiritual counseling and autogenic training Continued www fop net
June 2020 Edition Partnership Continued Research on yoga and meditation has further explored the connection between mind body and spirit Studies show that the mindful movement and breathing done in yoga activates the relaxation response Consequently yoga moves the nervous system out of the fight flight or freeze response associated with stress and into the rest and digest response increasing emotional well being Specific to law enforcement studies have confirmed that yoga and meditation can effectively reduce the risk of chronic disease a consequence of persistent exposure to law enforcement officer work distress Although there are many varieties of yoga westerners are most familiar with Hatha yoga which is an excellent choice for an American police department wellness program You may be thinking that yoga and mindfulness are just not for you for a variety of reasons But why not give it a try It may provide the relaxation your body needs to reconnect with your mind and fine tune your inner machine SOURCE Rasmussen HN et al 2009 Optimism and physical health A meta analytic review Annals of Behavioral Medicine 37 3 239 256 Streeter CC Gerbarg PL Saper RB Ciraulo DA Brown RP Effects of yoga on the autonomic nervous system gamma aminobutyric acid and allostasis in epilepsy depression and post traumatic stress disorder Med Hypotheses 2012 78 5 571 579 doi 10 1016 j mehy 2012 01 021 Garcia R A 2019 Yoga and meditation integrating mind body medicine into a workplace wellness program Police agency organizational and implementary considerations International Journal of Complementary Alternative Medicine 12 2 92 95 DOI 10 15406 ijcam 2019 12 00455 www fop net
June 2020 Edition Save the date Dr Tom Coghlan retired NYPD Detective and FOP member will provide a free educational webinar June 9 2020 More details coming soon In partnership with the National Organization for Victim Assistance NOVA the FOP recently hosted a webinar titled COVID 19 s Impact on Grief Loss and Death Notification https trynova adobeconnect com pykzm7ruzhe w www fop net
June 2020 Edition Gain strategies for coping with life as a law enforcement officer both on and off duty during this stressful time Captain Brian Nanavaty retired from Indianapolis PD and member of the FOP National Officer Wellness Committee is a nationally recognized instructor in the area of Officer Wellness The FOP is proud to bring you this free webinar as part of our ongoing efforts to help our members be well https youtu be Osci2JjvbEQ www fop net
June 2020 Edition www fop net
June 2020 Edition As summer arrives and we begin to get back outside get active Both mind and body can benefit from trying a new activity getting out and exploring nature or even practicing an activity you already enjoy Here are some suggestions from our Wellness Committee of activities they are looking forward to trying out or spending time focusing on this summer 1 Standup Paddleboarding 2 Rock Climbing 3 Hiking with family 4 Road biking 5 Surfing 6 Fishing 7 Geocaching 8 Wildlife photography 9 S mores by the firepit 10 Being adventuresome on the grill 11 Meditating at sunrise 12 Beach yoga Pick one learn about it and join us You never know it could be your next new favorite www fop net
June 2020 Edition Steps to Reduce Police Fatigue Given the current circumstances in our profession the workload of officers is not apt to soon decrease However there are things that officers can do Officers can control how they choose to react to stressful incidents acknowledge that fatigue plays a direct role on personal stress levels Officers will react as they have been trained when they are properly rested and alert In addition law enforcement officers can 1 Plan meals and make healthy eating choices and stop eating high calorie fast food 2 Plan vacation and downtime Write it down and stick to it 3 See your doctor regularly for checkups 4 Share the workload and reduce the amount of overtime 5 Live within your means so that moonlighting that second job is not necessary 6 Create a realistic exercise program and form healthy habits 7 Create a Patrol Buddy program and make time to check on each other 8 Keep your civilian friends and get away from the job no shop talk on downtime www fop net
June 2020 FOP Electronic Newsletters Click cover to open
June 2020 Edition Chateau Recovery First Responder Resiliency Program Midway UT www chateau com firstresponders FHE Health Inc Shatterproof Program Deerfield Beach FL https fherehab com services first responders Transformations Treatment Center Help For Our Heroes Program Delray Beach FL https helpforourheroes com Warrior s Heart Bandera TX www warriorsheart com www fop net
June 2020 Edition Approved Providers How the FOP Is Finding the Best One of the highest priorities of the Officer Wellness Committee is identifying professional mental health service providers that specialize in working with members of law enforcement The Committee seeks several key characteristics when vetting programs facilities and practitioners In evaluating inpatient treatment facilities the Committee looks first for a program dedicated only to first responders Members of the Committee physically visit the location to view the programs and facilities and to meet with staff and clients We ask for access to all parts of the grounds and we speak to first responder clients faceto face to gain an honest perspective of their experiences at the facility We talk with facility administration about payment arrangements and we walk through the intake and treatment process for potential clients Such an indepth evaluation is what we believe our members deserve www fop net
June 2020 Edition The National Board recently approved partnerships with two facilities which we would like to introduce to our members Chateau Recovery in Midway Utah provides a serene environment with the feel of a mountain lodge Chateau s First Responder Resiliency Program helps first responders gain the tools to build resiliency process stress and cope with trauma The program offers substance abuse treatment and peer support from fellow first responders throughout the process Further information can be found at www chateaurecovery com firstresponders Transformations Treatment Center in Delray Beach Florida provides a well rounded program within their Help Four Our Heroes track Within an educational type setting clients at Transformations are able to participate in guiding their own recovery by choosing from a variety of scheduled group programs for healing including adventure therapy and musical therapy The Help For Our Heroes Program also provides intensive substance abuse treatment as well as programs for families of first responders Further information can be found at www helpforourheroes com The Officer Wellness Committee has plans to visit several other facilities in the coming months in order to increase the list of FOP vetted and approved options for our members To recommend a facility or inquire further about our partners or the approval process contact the Officer Wellness Committee at officerwellness fop net www fop net
June 2020 Edition There is ALWAYS another option www fop net